Field Trip: Birmingham’s East Lake Park and Roebuck Springs

January 5, 2019, 7:00 am–12:00 pm

To register for this event, click on the blue button below. If you already have a Birmingham Audubon login and password, you can enter it there; if not, simply click the upper-right-hand “X,” and fill out the event registration form.

East Lake Park is one of Birmingham’s prime birding sites, with a variety of habitats that attract many species. It is one of the city’s oldest and most-visited public parks, as well as a stop on the Alabama Birding TrailsAppalachian-Highlands section. While the park’s highlight is a large, easily viewed central island—home to one of the area’s largest Black-crowned Night-Heron rookeries—birders can also expect to find resident and wintering songbirds along the banks of Village Creek, which runs along through southeastern edge of the park.

Following our morning walk around East Lake Park, we will head two miles northeast to Roebuck Springs, on the northeast side of Don A. Hawkins/Roebuck Municipal Golf Course. The site served Jefferson County pioneer George Roebuck (1778-1851) with water and land for his plantation. The pond and stream are one of four known habitats of the endangered Watercress darter and a jewel of a hot spot for birds.

The details: Meetup is at 7 a.m. in the Shepherd Center East parking lot (118 84th Street North). Be sure to bring good walking shoes and a variety of outerwear, as Alabama weather conditions can be notoriously changeable this time of year. We hope to see you there!

Accessibility: Wheelchair accessible

The birds: We will look for waterfowl, including mergansers, on the lake and songbirds along the stream and in the nearby woodlots. Herons, woodpeckers, and phoebes are common residents. Wilson’s Warblers and Vesper Sparrows have been spotted here in late winter.